A/N: Hey guys, more Draco for you! Thanks to everyone who's reviewed and added me to their favorites/story alerts lists! This isn't quiet as long as the last chapter, but I hope you guys enjoy it. It was pretty fun to write.

Disclaimer: I own nothing but the plot (which is developing!).

Hermione found part of herself actually looking forward to her first detention with Malfoy that night. It wasn't that she wanted his company per se, he had just given her a lot to think about earlier on the way to McGonagall's office. She thought she had had him all figured out as the cowardly little git she met in their first year. But now, there seemed to be something more to him, and she couldn't figure it out. And nothing bothered Hermione more than not understanding something.

Maybe the war had changed him after all. He still held on to his stupid ideologies, but he was no longer the obnoxious little boy she once knew. He was a man now, with a side to him she just couldn't quite get a grip on. There was also something much darker lingering in his eyes. Something that Hermione really didn't like.

For their detention, McGonagall had decided to make them tutor first years, as they both had always had good grades. Neither of them particularly liked the idea, but they couldn't complain. They had heard of much, much worse detentions – mainly from Professor Snape's doing.

They worked in an empty classroom with a small, not-so-bright, but mostly eager group of students, who were mostly having trouble with transfiguration and potions. Hermione got them all started on what they were doing and told them to raise their hands if they needed any help. She made her way back to the table where Malfoy was sitting and plopped down next to him. McGonagall said they had better at least pretend to get along.

Hermione, ever so awkwardly, made an attempt. "So… how are you?"

Malfoy snorted. "As if you care."

A hand shot up. It belonged to a nervous looking girl, who had a half-mouse, half-teacup sitting on her desk.

Irritated with Malfoy, Hermione turned to him with a sarcastic smile. "All yours." He scowled at her, but to her surprise, got up and went to the girl. The girl's eyes widened as she saw him heading in her direction. Hermione had to suppress a laugh, even though she felt bad for her. Malfoy was as much a legend as she was, just not in such a positive light.

"What?" he asked, harshly. The girl looked near tears.

"I-I'm having trouble with this erm, spell." Malfoy pulled out his wand and fixed her mistake, turning the object back into a mouse.

"Try again."

"But, I –"

"Try again," he repeated, raising his voice slightly. At this point, the rest of the first years were all staring at him in fear. At least no one else would be raising their hands for the rest of the hour.

The girl tried the spell again and got closer this time, but her cup was still furry and had whiskers. It also made the occasional squeaking sound. Without hesitating, Malfoy turned it back into a mouse again.

"Again." The girl flinched, but did what he said, obviously too frightened to even consider protesting.

This time nothing happened.

"Again."

"I c-can't!"

"Do it again," he demanded. Hermione was about to say something to him about his harsh treatment, but with a swish of her wand, the girl had completed the spell successfully. Without another word, Draco turned from her and came back to his seat next to Hermione.

The girl looked relieved, but Hermione thought she saw her wiping away a tear.

"That was unnecessary."

"Giving up is unnecessary. If she had just kept trying on her own, she would have been fine. She doesn't need help, she just needs to man the fuck up."

"She's a first year! This was probably the first day she's ever properly waved a wand!"

"And? Is that an excuse for lack of trying?" he challenged. Hermione was lost for words. There was no arguing that. And while his technique had been harsh, it was effective. "That's the problem with all you mud-, uh, muggleborns. You're too soft. You just don't get it." Malfoy corrected himself in case the first years were listening in. He didn't want any bad reports getting back to McGonagall.

"I don't get you, Malfoy. You're not stupid. And you're not just another follower like your idiot friends. What honestly makes you believe the sh-stuff you're saying?"

"Years of experience with it, Granger. And since when did you start caring about why I think what I do? I thought you already knew everything. Or what was it, 'a hell of a lot more than me'?"

"Reasoning behind something can change everything," she said, quietly.

"Why don't you just shut up. I know we're stuck in detention together, but it doesn't mean we're suddenly best friends. Go whine about me to Potter as I'm sure you have over the past 7 years and quit trying to analyze me to my face."

"Where's the harm in just talking?"

"The harm is that I don't want to fucking talk to you!" Hermione was momentarily taken aback. How could she have forgotten that this was Draco Malfoy she was dealing with.

"Oh yeah. That's right. Gods forbid someone catches you talking with a mudblood. Forget what I said before, you're as much of a blind follower as all those worthless Death Eaters, including your family. Too worried about what everyone around you thinks to so much as make a simple decision on your own."

Hermione was fairly certain that if they had been alone, his hand would have been wrapped around her throat again. Finding that oddly satisfying, she grabbed a book out of her bag and began to read.

The remainder of the hour went by excruciatingly slowly between the students being too afraid to raise their hands and the tension between her and Malfoy. She pretended to read; there was no way she could focus.

It was finally over, however, and Hermione announced to the students that they could leave. They all raced for the door. As Hermione bent to put her book back in her bag she heard the door slam shut. Malfoy was standing near her, with his wand out.

"Are you ready to take back what you said, mudblood?"

Hermione, in her confusion, wasn't sure what to say. "What…?"

"You need to stop running your mouth, Granger. Or I'll really make you regret it." There was no smirk on his face. His eyes were dark, and focused on her, as was his wand.

"I would take it back…. If it weren't all true," Hermione said with a glare, not caring about the consequences. She did, however, reach for her wand and look for an escape route.

"Looking for this?" He already had her wand.

"How did you get that?"

"You left it on the table, you stupid mudblood. See what I mean? About the whole mudblood thing? You guys just can't keep it together. Not even smart enough to stay on guard."

"You'll get kicked out of Hogwarts if you do anything, Malfoy."

"Oh, no I won't. Because you won't be telling anyone. Trust me on that. If you do, I'll be taking it out on Potter. And at that point, I won't have anything to lose, so I won't hold back. Now, take it back."

"No."

"Ah, I see. You're letting your pride get in the way. Well, don't worry too much about that; you have nothing to be proud of. So, just let it go… or I'm really going to make you regret it. You thought what I did was bad? Just wait…"

Hermione just glared at him. She refused to give in. And he was right – her pride was on the line. She never gave in throughout all the torture she endured during the war. She wasn't about to start now.

"You're just like your crazy fucking aunt. Willing to do anything for something she didn't even understand."

"Silencio. I am so sick of hearing your voice. And then you go on and say something about my family. It's bad enough to listen to you prattle on about nothing. And then you start spouting out nonsense about what I don't understand and what my family doesn't understand when you're the one who DOESN'T HAVE A FUCKING CLUE." He took a second to calm himself down, before he began to step closer and closer to Hermione. She saw the incident on the train replay in her mind. Instead of backing straight up, she side-stepped as to not end up against the wall again.

Malfoy appeared to have noticed. "I see you're learning. Maybe there is hope. Oh, no, wait. There isn't. There's no hope for you. Unless we can find a way to clean that filthy blood of yours. As much as I like the idea of all your blood draining from your body, I'm not going to try it. I don't want to risk getting any on me."

By side-stepping, Hermione had unknowingly trapping herself further into a corner. And Malfoy was still coming closer, step by step, and Hermione was beginning to panic. She couldn't scream or yell or even talk back to him, and she knew she couldn't overpower him physically. Her wand was in his back pocket. Basically, she was fucked.

Malfoy just glared at her as he drew nearer. "Hm, I quite like the new, silent Granger. So much prettier when that little mouth isn't running." His eyes looked her up and down. This made Hermione extremely uncomfortable. Malfoy just laughed humorlessly as she squirmed. "Am I making you uncomfortable?" he asked, stepping so close she could feel his breath on her face. "How about now?" Taking yet another step closer, they were almost touching. She could feel her breasts brush against his chest when she breathed.

Hermione was terrified and didn't bother hiding it. She was stuck. There was nothing she could do. Unwilling to give up, however, she looked around her desperate for something she could at least hit him with and use his momentary surprise to run. But there was nothing.

All that was left was her wand. She had to find a way to reach behind him and manage to do it without getting hexed.

"Look at me!" he yelled into her face. She mouthed back, "why," wanting to scream it, forgetting she had been silenced. She lifted her face to look at his, after clearing her face of fear. He wasn't going to get that enjoyment.

She looked into his eyes and immediately regretted it. That darkness she had seen before had completely taken over. It scared the hell out of her. She quickly looked away from his eyes and down to his strong jaw bone. She followed the line of it, and then moved up to his lips. They were perfect. Full, but not to the point of being feminine. His nose was slightly pointed, but perfectly suited to the rest his angular face. His pale skin was laid over his cheekbones, which she followed up to his temples. There wasn't a single hair astray in his blonde eyebrows, but his hair was falling in locks over his forehead. Even then, it was very neat disorder, somehow. He was beautiful. There was no denying it. No matter how much she hated him. She mentally slapped herself for letting this distract her, even if just for a few moments.

Looking back down to his lips, her plan formulated. Without giving herself a chance to think about it, she closed the distance between them, leaned up and crashed her lips onto his. It had just the effect she had been hoping for. She felt his wand drop from where it was jabbed into her side and his whole body stiffened. Not sparing a second, she snaked her arms around his waist and grabbed for her wand. Without being able to see it, she couldn't find it first. Finally she felt it brush her fingers, and she grabbed it. She began to withdraw her arms, but with what seemed like lightning speed, he reached back and grabbed the wrist of her wand hand. His grip was tight, and he practically growled as he reached his other arm around her waist and pulled her body tight to his. Then he kissed her back with bruising force. The pressure of his fingers wrapped around her wrist grew painful, so much that she dropped her wand.

She was so in shock she didn't even struggle. She couldn't seem to get past the thought that Draco Malfoy was kissing her. What the hell was going on?

As his teeth latched onto her bottom lip, a sound of pain escaped her lips and only seemed to enthuse him. The hand that was holding her wrist released her and moved to the back of her head and tangled into her hair.

After a few more seconds of painful kissing, he yanked her head back by her hair and looked straight into her eyes. "Now you can tell Potter that you really did snog me." He then threw her to the floor by her hair and left the room, only stopping to add, "And if you think this is over, you've got another thing coming."

Hermione lay on the floor, out of breath, and terribly, terribly confused. What the fuck just happened?